EVER dreamt of being a self-appointed president living a real life game of Monopoly?
Now you have the chance to own every hotel on every street, that is of course if you have a spare $11 million handy.
A town in Tasmania is up for sale and anybody wanting to own their own lodge, golf course and waterfall can put in a bid.
Tarraleah was owned by property developer Julian Homer, who has spent more than a decade building his dream city, but now he wants to pass it onto somebody who has a new vision.
What used to be a booming hydro town in the 1920s and 30s with a population of about 2000, is now a tourists’ paradise.
The Lodge in Tarraleah attracts many tourists. Source: SuppliedSource:Supplied
Inside The Lodge at Tarraleah. Source: SuppliedSource:Supplied
Knight Frank’s hotel, motel and business consultant, John Blacklow, said there was already a five-star lodge in Tarraleah, which the new town owner will takeover.
Mr Blacklow said it turned around a profit of about $2 million a year.
There are no residents in the town except for those who work at the lodge.
“There are a range of people interested in it, we’ve had quite a few overseas calls,” Mr Blacklow said.
“We expect groups to purchase it, such as companies who want to use it for retreats, franchise operators and church and religious groups — we’ve already had calls from those people.”
Mr Blacklow has worked in the property sector for decades but has never sold a town.
“It really suits a developer who can take it to the next level,” he said.
Basically you can set your own rules, legal and within council guidelines of course, but there have actually been some pretty crazy things people have done once they’ve bought towns so here are just a couple of ideas if you’re interested.
Tarraleah is a luxury wilderness that you can buy. Source: SuppliedSource:News Limited
BIKINI HAVEN
Ever heard of a place called Bikinis in Texas?
Odd name for a town, but it was the place of the “breastaurant”.
In 2012, a man named Doug Guller purchased parts of a small town near Fredericksburg on Craigslist.
It may have only been 1.6 acres, but Mr Guller had a somewhat special dream for his town.
He wanted to create a chain of “breastaurants” where bikini-clad women serve “less food and more booze”.
The Austin Eater reported in 2012 Mr Guller, who was also self-appointed mayor, wanted his town to be a big playground.
He was even into looking at creating “bikini bucks” for the town’s currency.
Sadly, this venture never turned out the way Mr Guller planned.
I mean, Carmen Electra herself turned up for the opening of Bikinis’ first breastaurant to be inducted into its hall of fame, but it’s pretty much been downhill from there.
Last year he restored the town to its former glory and reverted the name back to Bankersmith.
He thought that would help him mend relationships with some unhappy neighbours.
A man in the US renamed a town Bikini. Source: ShutterstockSource:Supplied
COFFEE LOVERS
Buying a town is certainly a unique way to advertise a brand but a Vietnamese businessman did just that.
He bought the town Buford in Wyoming in 2012 for just under $1 million.
Pham Dinh Nguyen named it PhinDeli Town Buford, after his coffee brand.
The town has a population of one and Wyoming news reported the investor wanted the town to become an American hub for his brand of coffee.
TINSEL TOWN
A small ghost town in North Carolina that entertained celebrities such as Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth in 2012 was up for sale that same year.
Scenes for the Hunger Games were shot in Henry Mill Village and sadly the owner couldn’t get anybody to buy it back then.
The owner however capitalised on the town before he died last year, charging $40 for tours of the Hunger Games’ “District 12”.
Wade Shepherd owned all of the 20 buildings in Henry Mill Village.
He put the town up for sale for $1.4 million but had no offers.
Jennifer Lawrence portrays Katniss Everdeen in a scene from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1. Source: AP/Lionsgate Picture: Murray CloseSource:AAP
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